Missing the Point
by Celebriangel
Summary: Harry's been behaving very strangely, and Hermione is determined to figure out why! She is aided and abetted by clueless!Ron, puts two and two together, and ends up with...one and a half? HD, RHr
1. Restlessness

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to JKR, except the plot, which is mine.

Notes: Thanks to TigerKaos for laughing at this! I'd never have posted if it wasn't for her. This is slash, and though I wouldn't quite call it fluff, there isn't a great deal of angst either. Now, on with the story!

_I can't shake the thought of you_

_I should get on; forget you,_

_But why would I want to?_

_I know we said goodbye:_

_Anything else would've been confused,_

_But I want to see you again._

Dido _Sand In My Shoes_

During The Christmas Break

Harry paced the common room. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately, Hermione had noticed. She had also noticed his volatile mood, which looked like a continual battle between frustration and depression. At the moment, frustration was winning: hence the pacing. Ron was sitting beside her, half-heartedly doing his Transfiguration essay, and sneaking peeks at Hermione's perfect finished version. Neither of them said anything to Harry, knowing he was long past hearing them.

Harry sat down, and put his head in his hands. He felt tears pricking behind his eyes, and shook his head furiously. He knew he was being stupid, knew that _He_ wouldn't be sitting, wallowing in self-pity and crying. _He _never cried; not once, in all the time Harry had known him, had _He _ever cried.

Harry stood up again. His hands curled into tight fists in frustration. An ink bottle top rose lazily into the air, then a piece of parchment. A cushion and quill followed, and began to slowly circle round Harry. The fire crackled louder and grew larger, and the windows began to hum with the tension. The objects spun faster and faster. His mind was perfectly clear. No unwieldy emotions cluttered his thinking. He hadn't felt so...calm, and liberated, since…since before a few weeks ago. The windows hummed louder, striking a discordant note.

"Harry, stop!" said Hermione shrilly, very alarmed. A window shattered, and the various objects fell to the floor. Ron dived for Hermione's precious essay. Harry unclenched his fists and looked around in surprise, then he sighed and sat down, muttering 'Reparo' to fix the window.

"Harry…what's wrong?" Ron asked, tentatively.

"Nothing," Harry snapped, and headed to his dorm room. Ron sighed and chucked aside his parchment and quill.

"Ron, something isn't right. Even _you_ must have noticed that!" said Hermione in exasperation. She was _trying _to discuss Harry's behaviour with Ron, but there is a marked difference between 'trying' and 'actually managing to get a response' when discussion with Ron is involved.

"Can you at least be a satisfactory Cardboard PersonTM for me to bounce ideas off of?"

"Yeah, all right," said Ron with a small grin. Hermione was in 'one of her moods' He was worried about Harry, but…the guy could take care of himself. Everyone smashed a window or two – Fred and George made it a regular practice. Ron's thoughts drifted to Quidditch, and he began mapping out strategies into thin air. Hermione started pacing and talking very fast, her brain and mouth and feet working in co-ordination, as always when she was trying to work something out.

"Harry's depressed about something…what? I'm not going to get anywhere there, he hasn't said much apart from 'nothing' and 'I'm fine' in ages. But he's also frustrated, which suggests he doesn't think the whatever-it-is is worth being depressed over…which means it isn't something like quidditch, or NEWTS…not that he'd worry about that anyway. The school isn't against him, there aren't any bad reports in the Daily Prophet…it's emotional, I know it is," She looked over at Ron, who was moving his hands in complicated patterns that presumably made sense to him.

"Ron, Harry hasn't been behaving…_strangely_ lately, has he?" Hermione asked, breaking his trance.

"Er, Hermione—"

"I mean before all this started."

"I…dunno, I suppose he disappeared sometimes, and at night…not especially, why?" Ron said. Hermione hid a smile. "He's probably just been seeing someone," said Ron nonchalantly. "Give it a rest; he'll get over it."

Hermione's mouth dropped open.

"_You actually made an intelligent suggestion_." She blinked at him for a second, nonplussed, but got back into action a moment later. "I think there's hope for you yet – come on!" she said, and dragged him out of the common room.

"Where to? Not the bloody Libr—"

"No, Ron; we're going to the Owlery."

"Why?" asked Ron, rubbing his arm where she'd grabbed it.

"To write to Sirius," she said, as if this was perfectly obvious.

Sirius looked up in time to see a small owl, which had been flying erratically at breakneck speeds towards him, crash into the ground and skid to a halt. He chuckled a bit as he retrieved the letter from the unknown sender. The owl looked familiar. It smelt familiar, too, thought Padfoot. Hang on – it was that hyperactive owl he'd given to Ron ages ago. Which meant that the message came from him, or possibly Hermione, and not Harry, unless Hedwig was injured.

_Dear Snuffles, _It read.

_Ron and I are worried about Harry Oh, shut up, Ron. He seems to be depressed about something. It's not Quidditch (he'd have said to Ron) or NEWTS (he'd have asked to borrow my notes then asked Ron where he'd put them) or the Daily Prophet, or the rest of the school. There's something he hasn't told us. I'm not surprised he hasn't told Ron, but he could've told me. Ron, If you're going to_ (here there was a large blotchy mess) _anyway, we were wondering if he'd told you. Ron thinks it is – or rather was – a girl. (First intelligent theory he's had in ages) __Hey But Harry tends to be rather obtuse about that sort of thing, so I'd probably have noticed. Hope you can help, _

_Hermione & Ron_

Sirius chuckled again and raised an eyebrow. He scrawled an answer – No, Harry hadn't told him anything, and Ron was probably right. He smiled, imagining Hermione's furious look. Really, Hermione and Ron were quite a pair. He remembered how depressed James had been when Lily had dumped him…mind you, he went around milking it for all it was worth, going the whole nine yards with the misery act. James had always been very flamboyant, much more attention-seeking than Harry was. But he had got Lily back in the end, and Harry'd be all right too.

Hermione breathed carefully and placed the letter down concisely. Oh no, thought Ron, that's what happens when she—

"So, basically, you all think he's hung up over some girl and he'll get over it!"

"Yeah, probably," said Ron.

"Ron, it was a rhetorical question," said Hermione, her tone slipping from angry to exasperated…"You're all so _blind!_"…And back to angry again. "Haven't you noticed that he _never _looks at the Slytherin table? Not even when Malfoy got really annoyed and shoved all his dinner and place setting onto the floor and stalked out! In fact, I'll swear he was trying to bore a hole in the opposite wall with his eyes…" she stopped. "Now that I think about it…he never looks at Malfoy either. And Malfoy never insults him, never even looks at him! It's like for each of them, the other doesn't even exist!" she was getting frantic. "But what does it all mean?" she asked quietly, trying to dig out a few more facts.

"Hermione, how do you notice all this stuff?" asked Ron, happily remembering The Malfoy Incident of Sixth Year. Poor Ron – fate had decided to make him get a lot closer to Malfoy than he'd ever wanted to.

"Well, how do _you_ manage to _not_ notice?" said Hermione, and the conversation shifted from a one-sided discussion of Harry to an argument about Ron being oblivious/Hermione far too observant for any normal human.

Hope this got a few smiles (I laughed writing it, but then, I'm the author and definitely slightly mad)! Please review because it makes me so happy.

CelebrianAngel


	2. Resolutions

Harry didn't get up the next day to go to breakfast, nor did he intend to go to classes (stuff Snape). If he had, he might have noticed that Draco Malfoy didn't go either. But then, considering his allergy to the Slytherin table, he might not.

Draco Malfoy sat in bed, trying to compose a letter, and several failed attempts were lying crumpled on the floor. Eventually he decided on a simple note. This done, he was able to sleep properly for the first time since…since before a few weeks ago.

Harry lay in bed, trying to catch some sleep and failing as usual. Curiously, a large plumed eagle owl flew in through the open window and dropped a note on his bed. It flew off; satisfied its work was done.

H

Meet me outside the Room of Requirement at 12.00pm. I'll explain later. Please

DM

Harry debated not going, but realised he would regret it for a long time hence if he didn't. At ten to twelve, he got up and changed into his robes. He tried to flatten his hair, dismissed it as a lost cause, and left. He arrived exactly on time, to find Draco already there. Even though Draco was always fashionably late.

Draco looked at him briefly, then returned his gaze to the floor. Harry was surprised to find that the other boy looked as dishevelled and badly rested as Harry himself did.

"You came," he whispered, and Harry nodded, but didn't say anything. There was silence for a few minutes.

"This isn't working," said Draco in a rush, still not looking at Harry.

"Yeah?" Harry decided to play nonchalant.

"I…I know I was the one who broke it off, because of my father—"

"He's not worth it." Harry interrupted.

"I know." Draco looked away, and smiled bitterly to himself. A strange expression, different from the smirks and sneers the world saw and the smiles shown occasionally to Harry. "You called me a coward, and, well, I suppose I proved you right. I didn't even mean to break it off…actually I came to say my father wanted me to marry someone pure-blooded and Slytherin, and that if I wouldn't choose to his approval then he would chose for me. And then you called me a coward, and…no one insults Draco Malfoy. And when they do, it isn't supposed to hurt."

"I always could get under your skin," said Harry scathingly.

Draco understood. He took a breath and turned to leave, willing the tears not to fall, at least until he left the room. The room of requirement was small, painted in a nondescript colour and without furniture. Of course Draco noticed none of this as he walked slowly towards the door.

"Draco," he stopped. "Come here." He shouldn't, it wouldn't do any good, Harry was just here to make him regret his mistake, but his feet took him there anyway. He stopped a few feet from Harry. "Closer," Harry whispered.

Draco couldn't breathe. He hadn't been breathing properly for the past few weeks anyway. Harry tilted Draco's chin up, and looked at him. Memorising the face he'd tried so hard to forget, but which still had haunted his dreams.

And then he kissed him. A whisper of a touch at first, knowing it would drive Draco mad. The kiss grew desperate as they gave in, fighting to possess each other, bodies pressed together hungrily. It was like a narcotic; fierce pleasure and need, totally addictive, and if you don't have it then you feel only half alive—

And after weeks of trying to forget, trying to resist temptation that was impossible to resist for long, they spent an hour imprinting the other on their memories, remembering _exactly_ what bliss felt like.

"We'd better get to lunch," said Harry.

"Mmmn…yes, all right. I didn't have breakfast," said Draco.

"Neither did I."

"Well, lunch looks to be the order of the day,"

They parted reluctantly and went to lunch, separately of course.

Harry sat down at the Gryffindor table with a large grin on his face. Ron and Hermione looked surprised and slightly alarmed, but decided not to push it…that much.

"Hi, Ron; hi, Hermione." said Harry, and began wolfing his lunch. There was a silence.

"Er…well, we thought something was bothering you, but it…seems to have gone." said Ron in puzzlement.

"Oh…just tying up a few loose ends." said Harry thickly. Ron relaxed a little, and Hermione looked at him with interest. Harry caught Draco's eye, and the other boy rolled his eyes exaggeratedly at Harry's table manners. Harry smiled sheepishly and slowed down. He looked up a moment later to see Draco lick his knife. Harry smirked and Draco licked his knife again saucily.

Hermione grabbed Ron and dragged him bodily out of the Great Hall.

"What's with Harry? He's acting like…well, strange. What happened to his depression? And, Ron, he looked over at the Slytherin table, and he _smirked!_ Something strange is going on," she determined.

"Er, 'Mione, he…er,"

"What?"

"He had a…a…er, a…"

"Oh, Ron, just spit it out!"

"He had a…a _love bite_ on his neck." said Ron, his ears going red.

Hermione stared. "You were right!"

"Shall we ask him tonight?" asked Ron hopefully.

"Yes, all right."

Hermione and Ron formed a front in the common room, preparing for Harry's arrival. Harry came in and sat down on an armchair smiling contentedly. Hermione took a breath and opened her mouth, going over her planned speech. In the end, she just blurted,

"Harry, we know you have a girlfriend. Who is she?" she said, realising that that the chances of Harry giving a name were slim. Harry looked at her for a second. Then he burst out laughing. Now it was Hermione's turn to stare.

"You can't deny it. We're your friends and we know you," put in Ron helpfully.

"Hmm," said Harry, clearly enjoying himself thoroughly. "I haven't been seeing a _girl_, I promise you." Hermione and Ron were too stupefied to keep their front, so Harry went up to the dorms, still grinning madly.

"He's lying," said Hermione definitely. "At least, I think he is. Mostly, anyway."


	3. Revelations

"We have to tell them," said Harry. "They've been investigating; they're getting suspicious." He snorted. "They think I have a girlfriend."

Draco started laughing as well, and they continued for quite a while. "I always fancied you as my bitch," said Harry, leering at him before degenerating into laughter once more, "But that's not quite what I meant." Draco ran a hand through his hair and stretched, pulling up his top to reveal a flat stomach and creamy skin with one or two well-placed hickeys.

"Anyway, the entire school will know within minutes if Ron finds out suddenly." said Harry, trying to ignore Draco's antics.

"Yeah, he has this small anger management problem…So we don't let him," said Draco.

"You underestimate Hermione."

"Hmmm…she'll be shocked if we tell her though And the Weasel will be horrified."

"I don't care if they fall down and have a bloody heart attack! Okay, I do, but that's beside the point. I want them to know, because we've told them. They're my friends, you know? And don't call Ron that,"

Draco rolled his eyes. "All right."

"And, there are some conditions…"

Harry chose a time when Ron and Hermione were alone in the Common Room – not that this was difficult, since only three other Gryffindors had decided to stay over Christmas break. He brought Draco in, then put him under the invisibility cloak and shoved him in the shadows.

"Ron? Hermione?" They turned round, and Harry beckoned Draco out of the shadows and drew the cloak off with a small flourish. "I want you to meet Draco Athos Malfoy." Draco grimaced at his middle name. Ron gave Hermione a 'what the hell…?' look and Hermione raised her eyebrows.

"Go on," Harry prompted.

"Malfoy," They both said.

"Granger, Weasley," said Draco. Harry frowned at him, and Draco pouted.

"Now that we've all been so cordially introduced," said Hermione, wondering who had Polyjuiced pouting Parvati into Malfoy.

"What the hell is he doing here!" Ron shouted. Draco folded his arms and smirked at Harry.

"I'd really like to wipe that smirk off your face." Harry murmured. Draco grinned wickedly. "Not that way!" He gave Draco a playful backhand. "Like this," He put a hand over Draco's mouth. He protested loudly and thickly, and Harry grinned and removed his hand.

"That's not fair! You can't do that to me! It's an insult to Malfoy dignity!"

"Not that you're looking very dignified at the moment," said Harry wryly, and Draco shut up, casting petulant looks in Harry's direction. Ron was looking…confused, and Hermione listened and watched with interest and obvious bewilderment. Harry put his arm around Draco's shoulders. They both leaned into the gesture, and their bodies fitted together seamlessly, she noticed, and then,

"Shit," said Hermione. Ron stared at her. "Tell me that was a platonic gesture?" Ron frowned. Hermione using words he didn't know happened at least twice every sentence, but she _never_ swore. Harry leaned over, and, brushing aside a lock of his fine hair, kissed Draco on the forehead. Hermione blanched. Ron turned green and swallowed, having difficulty comprehending this turn of events.

"I don't believe it," said Hermione, wanting an explanation rather than proof.

"If you say so," said Draco, giving Harry a meaningful look. They pulled close and kissed softly, breaking off when it got a little too heated. Harry grinned widely.

"Allow me to introduce Draco Malfoy, my boyfriend." Ron was stunned, speechless, shocked, very green and seemed to be having difficulty breathing, which didn't make for a nice colour combination. However, he still managed to choke out a sentence.

"Get a bloody room!" he sputtered, and dashed. Draco matched Harry's grin.

"That went well, didn't it?" he said innocently.

"Harry!" said Hermione. "This morning…you smirked at the Slytherin table, and Ron saw a…a mark on your neck…hang on, you broke up, didn't you? That's why you were depressed, and the accidental magic…You ruined my essay you know…and why you wouldn't look at each other…and the reason you began laughing like mad when we asked you if you had a girlfriend!" She snorted, and seemed to be trying not to giggle.

"Um, whatever. Can you try to resuscitate Ron, you know, smooth the way? He looked kind of shocked." said Harry.

"Kind of? He looked like he was about to fall over and faint." said Draco.

"Whatever. And can you knock first if you want to come in?"

"Yes, all right." said Hermione. "What do you want me to knock for? Oh…" she blushed. "Have fun,"

She left, and heated snogging ensued.

"Ron, you completely overreacted. How do you think they felt? You seem to be expert at making people feel bad about their relationships."

"I was just shocked. I mean…_Harry _and _Malfoy?_ I wonder what the odds are that, out of the entire school, he just had to choose his worst enemy. Exactly how long ago were they at each other's throats?"

"I don't know," said Hermione. "It could've been months. And you'll have to get used to calling him _Draco_. Besides, have you seen the way Harry looks at Draco? Or the way Draco looks back?"

"I – well, I suppose they broke up?"

"Yes. They both looked awful, so don't think they'll get over it in a hurry. Give it a chance. Now, let's go down, and you will behave, Ronald Weasley!"

Ron nodded; knowing it was useless to argue. "All right."

Ron stretched out his hand to the door handle, about to enter the common room. Hermione pulled him back roughly.

"We have to knock," she explained to a confused Ron, and rapped the door smartly with her knuckles.

"Knock?" Ron repeated stupidly.

"Do you really want to walk in on them? I was tying to spare you."

Ron shuddered. Calls of 'shit', 'it's them', 'Draco, tuck your shirt in', 'Doesn't your hair flatten?' and various others could be heard, muffled by the door.

"Come in!" one of them yelled.

"What is this, private quarters?" Ron muttered, but he went in. The boys looked…thoroughly snogged.

Fortunately, (or, more likely, due to Hermione's influence: Ron discovered that Hermione could be very persuasive sometimes) Ron decided to be amicable. He was, it seemed, more averse to the fact that Harry (gulp) liked _Malfoy_, who was until a few hours ago, or so Ron thought, a sworn enemy rather, than that he liked boys in general.

"Mum'll be heartbroken," he said to Harry jokingly. "She had her heart set on you marrying Ginny." Draco snorted and hid a smirk.

"She'll get her wedding. At least, she will if you stop being a prat and ask Hermione out eventually." Ron blushed crimson and Draco started laughing. Even Harry couldn't hide a large grin.

They managed to keep up conversation, but at around ten o'clock, Draco announced that it was time to leave.

"I will be missed; I need to go,"

"I'll come too," said Harry.

"Planning to sabotage Slytherin?"

"Don't be ridiculous – Gryffindors do have _standards,_ you know."

They left. Ron cocked his head; sure there was a chink in their logic, or something he had missed. Hermione sighed, smiling.

"Ron, they went for a snogging session!" she said, trying not to giggle. Ron's ears turned red.

"Oh…"


	4. Reflections Epilogue

Two Months Later

"Hermione, do you think they've…" asked Ron speculatively.

"Think they've what, Ron?"

"That they've…_you know_,"

"As in…" Hermione raised an eyebrow. It was thoroughly amusing to see Ron flounder over Harry and Draco's relationship. She continued with the essay she was proofreading.

"As in…uh…gone past snogging," he said with difficulty.

"Meaning…?" she asked innocently, knowing full well what he meant, and had done since he first asked.

"D'you think they've…had sex?"

"I should think so," said Hermione absently, preoccupied with her essay. There, see, she had spelt 'apparuitus' wrongly.

"Ah…" Ron spluttered. He had been hoping for, and expecting, a denial or an absent reply of indifference. "I didn't think you'd say that,"

"Why? It's true. In fact, I'm almost positive they have."

"Umm…how?"

"They're _boys_, Ron, what did you expect? You're a member of their testosterone-driven species, after all. I walked in on them once…" she restrained a giggle. "It was so funny. Harry blushed and Draco crossed his arms and tried not to smile too much," she giggled a little, and blushed. "They weren't wearing very much…" she stuffed her fist in her mouth and snorted.

"Er…Hermione, are you all right?" asked Ron, slightly scandalised.

"Yes," she said. "It's just that, you know, it was quite hot."

_"Hot?"_

"Yes…two guys together is hot; most girls say so anyway. I'm beginning to think there's some truth in it…Can I go back to proofreading my essay now? I've read this one sentence about six times," she said, a little irritated. Ron nodded, still a little confused, and reluctantly pulled out his quill and parchment

There was a long silence, in which neither got much work done (Ron wrote precisely two words and some doodles and blotches, and Hermione only managed a few inches of her essay).

"Erm…Hermione?" asked Ron, tentatively.

Hermione put down her quill and parchment and looked at him.

"Yes, Ron?"

"Would you, er…I mean, could we…"

"Yes?" she said, her breath shuddering briefly, aware of the sudden tension in the room.

"Oh, sod it," said Ron, and he leaned across and kissed her. Hermione offered little protest, and they relaxed into the kiss. A faint snort of restrained laughter parted them, and then –

"Oh…um, how long have you been here?" asked Hermione, colour creeping its way onto her face. Harry and Draco were standing against the wall, in an entanglement of limbs, smiling at the embarrassed couple.

"Just about since Ron stopped staring in your _general direction_ and started staring _directly at you_," said Draco, indifferently. Hermione decided to keep her mouth shut.

"Which was, clearly, when he decided to stop being a prat."said Harry. "Don't worry, It can't have been more embarrassing than it was for us," They smiled at each other, clearly remembering.

"What happened?" asked Ron, in a desperate attempt to get the subject changed from him and Hermione.

"That," they said together, "Is something we sincerely hope you never find out."

_Finis_

A/N: I'm done! Hope everyone liked, and...yes, I may fill you in about Harry and Draco's mysterious embarrassing get-together. Many thanks to Cali, or TigerKaos, who laughed at this, as I hope you guys will. I'm going to miss writing this! I love clueless!Ron, but in the end he had the right idea. Love to the kind people who reviewed.  
CelebrianAngel


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